Control Yuan urges mountain policy improvements; Mountain Association proposes four calls

Taiwan's Control Yuan has called for improved policies governing mountain areas, following an investigation into mountain accidents and commercial mountaineering management. The Republic of China Mountain Association responded by outlining four key recommendations, highlighting that the current moment is critical for rebuilding the nation's mountain governance system. The association stressed that mountain safety requires comprehensive reform beyond post-accident reviews, encompassing legal frameworks, education, professional training, industry management, and inter-agency collaboration.

The association noted the rapid growth in activities like hiking, canyoning, and climbing, transforming mountain areas into vital spaces for recreation, health promotion, environmental education, and tourism. However, current management is fragmented across various authorities, with inconsistent regulations and a lack of integrated principles for different activity types, including commercial expeditions, self-organized treks, training courses, and guiding services. Addressing the issue of "fake self-organized" groups, the association argued for a systemic reform rather than focusing on isolated phenomena, advocating for distinct management approaches for commercial and independent activities, with government resources focused on risk management and accident prevention.

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Mountain safety cannot stop at post-accident reviews; it requires comprehensive reform across legal systems, education, professional talent, industry management, and inter-agency collaboration. Only by establishing a complete governance structure can we truly reduce accident risks and allow more people to enter the mountains safely and responsibly.

Their four proposals include: first, establishing a national mountain governance structure led by the central government to coordinate responsibilities across agencies like sports, forestry, national parks, fire services, tourism, and local governments. Second, creating a risk-based classification and activity diversion system to differentiate between commercial guiding, self-organized groups, training, and guiding services, managing risks appropriately while balancing public safety, participation rights, international integration, and sustainable industry development. Third, developing a competency-based professional talent system, moving from simple licensing to standards, continuous education, and public information to improve service quality and reduce accident risks. Fourth, deepening indigenous co-governance and inter-agency cooperation, integrating indigenous traditional knowledge and local experience with central resources for cultural preservation, conservation, and sustainable local development.

The Mountain Association is compiling these recommendations into a "White Paper on Taiwan Mountain Activity and Outdoor Sports Policy" to serve as a reference for future government reforms.

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The reform truly needed is not a single phenomenon, but the entire system. Different activity types should adopt different management methods, allowing commercial activities to return to commercial management and self-organized activities to return to self-responsibility.